Sheet-folder.



D. G. WAGNER.

SHEET FOLDER.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 6, 1915.

1,222,33& Patented Apr. 10, 1917.

MME

DAVID G. WAGNER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

SHEET-FOLDER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 10 1917.

Application filed October 6, 1915. Serial No. 54,323.

To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that 1, DAVID Gr. WAGNER, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York city, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sheet- Folders, fully described and represented in the following specification and the accompanying drawings, forming a part of the same.

This invention relates to sheet folders, and more particularly to means for folding sheets as they are delivered from a printing machine. I

In the manufacture of bags of woven fabric such as burlap or cotton, it has been customary heretofore to print the fabric in a flat bed or cylinder press and to deliver the cut sheets by the delivery fly of the press flat, or unfolded, on to a table. The printed sheets are then folded in half by hand before going to the operators who sew them into bags.

The object of the present invention is es pecially to provide means for folding such printed sheets as they are delivered from the press so that they will be ready when taken from the press to go directly to the operators who sew them into bags, thus eliminating the hand folding. To this end, I provide in combination with the usual delivery fly by which the printed sheets are successively delivered flat, a folding fly to which the sheets are delivered by the delivery fly with the fold line or portion of the sheet at which the fold is to be located ex tending over the pivotal axis of the folding fly, and which folding fly after the delivery fly has moved back out of the way is operated to fold the sheet and deliver it folded. The invention includes various features of construction contributing to its successful operation, all of which will be hereinafter fully described and specifically pointed out in the claims. An approved embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows in side elevation parts of the delivery end of a printing press for printing sheets of woven fabric for making bags, having associated therewith a folding fly in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an end view of mechanism shown in Fig. 1, but showing the folding and delivery flies in a different position;

Figs. 3, 4, 5 and 6 are diagrammatic views illustrating the operation of the folding fly.

Referring to the drawings, 10 represents the delivery roll of the printing press, which is shown as formed in the usual manner of a plurality of spaced disks about which the printed sheets are directed by the usual tapes and from which the sheets are discharged downwardly in front of the delivery fly 11 when the latter is in its receiving position as shown in Fig. 1. The delivery fly is shown as formed in the usual manner of a plurality of rods carried by a rock shaft 12 and s0 spaced with relation to the disks forming the delivery roll 10 that when the fly is swung up and back to its receiving position the ends of the fly rods will enter slightly between the delivery roll disks, as shown in Fig. 1. The fly shaft 12 is rocked to cause the fly to oscillate between its receiving position, shown in full lines in Fig. 1, and its delivery position, shown by dotted lines in Fig. 1, that is, through an arc of about 90 as shown, by a cam 18 acting against the tension of a spring 14 through a lever 15, connecting rod 16 and arm 17 on the shaft 12. i

The folding fly 20 is mounted in position to receive the sheets from the delivery fly and is formed by a suitable fly frame carried by a rock shaft 21 mounted parallel with the shaft of the delivery fly. The shaft 21 is rocked to cause the folding fly to oscillate between a substantially horizontal receiving position indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 1 and a substantially horizontal delivery position indioated by full lines in Fig. 1; and the movements of the folding fly are timed so that when the delivery fly reaches its delivery position the folding fly will be in receiving position, and the folding fly will make its folding and return oscillations during the time that the delivery fly is raised up beyond the path of movement of the folding fly. The distance between the shafts 21 and 12 is such that each sheet will be delivered by the delivery fly to the folding fly in position with its fold line or portion at which the fold is to be located extending over the shaft 21 or pivotal axis of the fold ing fly, the position of a sheet a as delivered to the folding fly being shown in Fig. 3. As the delivery fly returns to its receiving position, the folding fly makes its folding movement, folding the forwardly extending portion of the sheet up and backward and then down toward the rearwardly extending portion thereof as shown by Fig. 4, and finally folding the two halves of the sheet together on the delivery table 22 or other delivery surface, as shown in Fig. 5, or on a pile of previously folded sheets on the table, as shown by Fig. 6.

When the folded sheets are left to accumulate in a pile on the' delivery table, successively folded sheets being deposited on the pile, it is desirable that the folding fly be driven through means including a slip connection so that the fly, while capable of making suflicient forward movement to carry the first folded sheet of the pile all the way down against the table, yet as the pile of folded sheets increases in-height the movement of the fly will be less and less, and always only just what is necessary to properly deliver the last folded sheet. As the stopping of the slip driven fly on its folding movement before it has made its maximum movement, would otherwise cause the fly on its return movement to swing back beyond the desired receiving position, a suitable stop, such as the wire or rod 23, is provided for limiting the return movement of the fly and insuring its coming to rest in the-desired receiving position. Such slip drive of the folding fly is conveniently provided by actuating the fly shaft by means of a friction drive provided by a belt; and the folding fly shaft 21 is conveniently driven from the delievery fly shaft 12 by means of a belt 24: running on pulleys on the respective shafts. As the angular movement of the folding fly is greater than that of the delivery fly, being desirably somewhat more than 180 as against about 90 of the delivery fly, the belt pulley on the two shafts should be correspondingly proportioned. 7

It is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the exact construction and arrangement and combination of parts shown and to which the foregoing description. has been largely confined, but that it includes changes and modifications thereof within the claims.

hat is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for folding sheets as the same are delivered from a printing machine, comprising a folding fly positioned to receive each sheet with its fold line extending over the axis of the fly and operating to fold each sheet on said fold line, means for actuating the fly including a slip connection, and a stop for limiting the return movement of the fly.

2. Apparatus for folding sheets, comprising a folding fly mounted to oscillate between a substantially horizontal receiving position and a substantially horizontal delivery position, means for delivering the sheets to be folded to the flywith the fold line of each sheet lying over the axis of the fly, a table for receiving the folded sheets from thefly, means for actuating the fly comprising a slip connection, and a stop for limiting the return movement of the fly.

3. The combination with a sheet delivery fly, of a folding fly mounted with its axis parallel to the axis of the delivery fly in position to receive the sheets directly from the delivery fly and operatingto fold the sheets backward toward the delivery fly, and operating means whereby the folding fly is caused to make its folding movement during the return'movement of the delivery fly.

1. The combination with a sheet delivery fly mounted to oscillate between a position for receiving a downwardly moving sheet to a substantially horizontal delivery position, of a folding fly to which the sheets are delivered directly by the delivery fly and which is mounted to oscillate between substantially horizontal receiving and delivery positions to fold and deliver the sheets, the axis of the folding fly being parallel to the axis of the delivery fly, and operating means whereby the folding fly is caused to make its folding movement during the return movement of the delivery fly.

5. The combination with a sheet delivery fly, of a folding fly mounted to receive the sheets from the delivery fly and operating to fold and deliver the sheets, means for causing the folding fly to oscillate between its receiving and delivering positions in cluding a slip connection, and a stop for limiting the return movement of the folding fly.

6. The combination with a sheet delivery fly, of a folding fly mounted to receive the sheets from the delivery fly and operating to fold and deliver the sheets, and means for actuating the folding fly from the shaft of the delivery fly comprising a friction belt' providing a slip connection.

7. The combination with a sheet delivery fly, of a folding fly mounted with its axis parallel to the axis of the deliveryfl in position to receive the sheets directly rom the delivery fly With their fold lines extend- In testimony whereof I have hereunto set ing over the axis of the folding fly and 0pmy hand in the presence of two subscribing erating to fold each sheet backward toward Witnesses.

the delivery fly, and operating means Where- DAVID G. WAGNER. by the folding fly is caused to make its fold Witnesses:

ing movement during the return movement A. L. KENT, I of the delivery fly. PAUL H. FRANKE.

Lopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. fi. 

